


Man Or Machine

by binaryV2



Category: RoboCop - All Media Types, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Gen, Melissa Hatsume and Shinsou are research buddies, Our protagonist has a secret identity, Tags to be added, Things Get Dark, When a mega corporation is so powerful they own your corpse, crossover AU, quirkless au, what makes a human human, who is he? :eyes:
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-07
Updated: 2020-06-07
Packaged: 2021-03-03 18:48:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,497
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24560311
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/binaryV2/pseuds/binaryV2
Summary: A once-dead man is given a second chance at life through a megacorporation that owns his corpse. Is he a blind machine, built to serve a purpose? Or is he a man, whose emotions are buried down under metal and wire?
Relationships: Midoriya Izuku/Melissa Shield, Other Relationship Tags to Be Added, implied
Comments: 1
Kudos: 7





	Man Or Machine

_"We are all dead men walking,_  
 _some are a bit more dead than most but in the end..._  
 _We are all the same..."_  
\- Steven Vein

What does Nothing feel like, exactly? It's a hard thing to pin. Nothing is... nothing. That much is able to be assumed. Is it cold? Is it dark? Is it damp? Well, no, not exactly. It's nothing. There is no way to describe nothing. An empty room is not nothing. It's an empty room. That much is certain. There is no possible way to pinpoint nothing. Something will always be something. There will never be nothing. With that being said, can we possibly discern that the afterlife is something? What if there is a heaven or an afterlife? That wouldn't be nothing. It would be something. But when people say, they believe there is "Nothing.." what do they mean exactly? Is there a deep dark black abyss starring into you? Is that nothing, or something? An abyss is something. A void is something... 

How do you describe the feeling of nothing? How do you describe nothing? 

Amidst black and a dark abyss lies a few static blips of light and life. The abyss is not cold, it doesn't feel like anything. Is that because there isn't anything to be felt? Or is that just what the abyss feels like..? Nothing. It's a complex question cut off soon by a clicking. A series of beeps and whirs come to life in the black abyss. Light crawls across the black as shadows and darkness are chased away by white light coming to life as if a TV is being powered on. Shapes begin to clear out and come into focus. It's hard to focus on any of those objects, due to text that crawls out in front of those objects and that light...

>Optic Drivers installed...  
>Running Diagnostic...  
>Essential System components required...

That text quickly fades away, as if it were never there.

>Command.Com  
>Load Bios  
>System Set  
>Ok.

It's scratchy. Like a scraping sound echoing very faintly through the air. It's hard to understand. It sounds like it's coming through a telephone speaker... Like what's being seen is just being seen through nothing but a monitor. A man soon walks into view, eyes sunken and tired. His clothes are a casual dress, T-Shirt, and Jeans but with a snow-white labcoat thrown over it all. The man's hair is a ruffled purple mess, bedhead at best. Eyes glance toward whatever is looking toward him. A drill in hand. His voice also sounds as if it's coming through a telephone speaker. "Shit... I must've accidentally turned you on..." He groaned, voice half-dead due to sleep. He moves toward whatever it is staring at him and reaches forward...

...And that's all it takes...

Darkness consumes everything in focus. The text, the objects in view, the man. They fade into the abyss of nothing. All there is is a CLICK! It's all over... just like that. That feeling of nothing consumes the mind of whatever had just briefly come to life. The abyss taking hold and wrapping around its mind once more. Any sounds that were there are gone. There is silence. It's cold, quiet, and it feels like nothing. A feeling that is hard to describe... It is swift, quick, and ruthless... and for some reason, it is unable to be described by the one feeling it. What is happening? If whoever would think that, could, they wouldn't find answers coming very easily to them. 

Light chases dark away again as that same room from before takes hold of the senses, grabbing them suddenly and keeping them alert and attentive. Those words scrawl about their vision again, but this time tinier... and toward the left corner... out of focus but still very much there.   
>Command.Com  
>Load Bios  
>Bios System Check  
>Ram Check  
>Config.Sys  
>bio.com interface to Rom/IO  
>Controller Comspec.exe

This time, there is a woman with that same man. They're starring right into the eyes of whatever is looking back at it. Despite the fact that they are starring at the two, they make no movements to talk or question the two. The purple-haired man looks toward a woman with pink dreads. She's covered head to toe in smudge stains and her eyes are a bright golden. Her forehead has a pair of fancy goggles crowned atop it. She looks just as tired as the purple-haired man, but she seems more energetic and full of life. She's wearing a tank-top and the top of a jumpsuit is just wrapped around her waist. She taps at her chin.

"I'm sure we can spice up the design a bit! This color palette is too plain and simplistic! We have to come up with something better!" She says, brimming with excitement over what the two could try. Seemingly, she is excited to mess with whatever it is she wants to change and modify. The tired man sips at a coffee mug and shrugs his shoulder. "Melissa said the focus groups were split... Either the plain white or all black." He said, moving over to a nearby terminal. He's tapping at keys with one hand as the gold eyed woman zooms toward what is looking back at her. She smiles, a smile so full of joy and excitement... if measured... it'd be off the scales.

"Hey~! Shinsou-Kun! He's totally looking at us right now!"  
  
He... They're a he? It's hard to comprehend, and the mind makes no effort to process and contain that new information. The mind of the man looking back at the golden-eyed woman absorbed that information with no hesitation. No noise is made, no movements are made. The purple-haired man, his name is Shinsou... Why is his mind not retaining this information? It's just brushing it all off as if none of it is relevant... or... as if it is capable of retaining it. Shinsou speaks, "Really? Is he tracking your movement..? He's not supposed to do that yet." Shinsou says, watching Mei snap in front of his own vision. The snap echoes through his mind like a pebble being dropped down a well...

Yet he remains still... unmoved... unshaken... unfeeling.

"Nah! He's just sitting there looking all zombie-like! Cool! I dig it!" The Golden-Eyed girl says as she bounces back toward Shinsou with a pep in her step. She leans over his shoulder. "Let's go with black! I'll fit him up with the stealth gear we've got in the workshop-" As she speaks, Shinsou taps at a keyboard. All sounds and sights cut off at the same time. Her voice just goes silent, quiet. He can't hear anything anymore and isn't struggling with that notion. It's frightening. However, for some reason...

He can't feel fear. He can't feel anything. He feels the indescribable feeling of nothing that is ever so present. 

It is like that for a long time. Quiet and dark...

And just like before... light sweeps across the area. It's that same room from before, the man with wild purple hair stands before him. He's bouncing a ball up and down on the ground. He's making dead eye contact. Words appear in the bottom left of his vision again.

>Targetting Algorithm Bootup Started  
>...45%  
>...75%  
>...100%  
>Tragetting Algorithm Ready.  
  
The voice of the golden-eyed woman is picked up by his hearing, but he can't move his head to see her. He just sees Shinsou bouncing the ball up and down. It's red, and the size of his fist probably. "His targeting CPU is all good to go~!" She says cheerfully, the sound of her clapping her hands is heard. Shinsou blinks, "Target." He holds the ball up. A target grid appears across his vision, four long red lines spanning across his vision, cutting it. They shrink, thin, and form into an X that's focused on the ball. Finally, for the first time in what felt like an eternity... Shinsou watched him move his head. 

It was slow, and the sound of a faint whirring echoed through the room. Clicking once the head was at rest. Shinsou lifted the ball up, down, left, right, and even bounced it a few times. Each time, the head accurately followed the ball's position and speed, moving up, down, left, right, and following it as it bounced. Shinsou caught the ball. "Lock on and destroy," Shinsou said as he sent the ball bouncing hard into the air with a huge swing of his arm. The ball flew up, way over his head. The X that followed it in his vision blinked white a few times as another whirring echoed through the air. He lifted his arm... He saw his own arm for the first time. 

It was thin, made of many tubes and wires. It was metallic and looked cold. Tons of tiny writing scrawled across it. Part numbers, bar codes. This arm had hydraulic parts that moved in tandem to make sure thin metallic fingers could grip a long black pistol in the hand of the arm. With grace, elegance, and speed, the trigger was pulled back on the pistol. A loud ping echoed through the air as a bullet shell shot out of the pistol. A loud wham echoing through the air as the ball EXPLODES with high pressure upon impact. Shinsou visibly flinches. "Hatsume! I said regular ammunition! Not explosive ammo!" He said, rushing over to her and out of sight as the arm lowered and the red target turned too green... 

Engulfed in darkness again, the mind wandered. He seemed to be piecing together what it was he was and where he had been. He was a robot? Perhaps a mechanical creation? He seemed to want to be disturbed by this notion... but for some reason, he could not physically will himself to scream or feel terror at this realization. He felt nothing toward this new revelation. He felt empty and quiet... empty and alone. He had a desire to scream, but no will to act upon it and as such had no desire to scream. It was a confusing mindset... his mind seemed to be halted. He wasn't dreaming, or sleeping, he was just in a state of mental limbo...

Lights begin filling darkness again as a woman stands before him. Not Shinsou, Not Hatsume, but a woman with long silky smooth blonde hair and large blue eyes. She was properly dressed, prim, and proper but like Shinsou, she had a white lab coat on. Text appeared again as she looked at him. She probably didn't see it, he was sure of it now. Since he'd begun to briefly understand what it was he had been in those very brief moments. She spoke to him, in a commanding tone. 

"Scan."  
Targetting algorithms appeared across her face, scanning eyes and facial features alike before displaying something toward him.  
>Identity confirm: Melissa Shield  
>Prior Arrest Records: **ZERO**.  
>Threat Analysis: NON-LETHAL.  
>Initalizing automated response greeting... Error! Greeting.EXE not found.  
  
He could hear Shinsou's voice speaking to Melissa, who he was assuming was blonde with blue eyes, "He has no programmed greetings or responses yet, but he's recognized you as a non-threat." He spoke before appearing by her side, arms crossed and eyes still very tired. Melissa let out a sigh. "Okay... We'll need to test the voice later then, is this the body-armor configuration we're sure we want to go with?" She asked, Shinsou stepping forward and tapping at the metallic surface that was most likely his skin.

"Yeah... This bodysuit was designed by a familiar friend... Obviously, evident by the two dots here. Their calling card." Shinsou said as he backed up. "Metallic casing is made out of a Kevlar carbon fiber, some Kolton thrown in there for heat resistance. It's capable of withstanding up to fifty caliber rifles and pistols... no more than that though." Shinsou says as he takes a pistol from a nearby workbench. He aims it toward the metal man, who promptly begins scanning him.

>Identity: Hitoshi Shinsou  
>Prior Arrest Records: **ZERO**  
>Threat Analysis: Shield Corporations Development team - Do not Engage. 

Shinsou fires three shots toward the metallic man, which makes Melissa subtly jump. Each round releases a loud TANG off the surface of the metallic man's armor. He bows to show off his work before putting the pistol down. "It's thin but durable. The darker colors are to help with covert operations and the tactical visor has a ton of different vision modes and scanning equipment." He said as he backed up and shrugged. "Also the black tested better with focus groups, so it's what we went with..." Shinsou said as he leaned his back against a wall.

Melissa rubbed her palms together nervously and seemed to fidget in place. 

>Higher Stress levels detected

She turned to Shinsou, "Can he walk? Let's see him walk." She asked, backing up a bit as Shinsou shrugged. "Detach him from the brace, Hatsume," Shinsou spoke. She let out an "Okay~!" Before loud clanging and soft snapping began to echo across the room.

>Upper spinal column released  
>Lower body released  
>Arm joints and wrist joints released  
>Leg joints and hip areas released  
>Movement mode engaged.

"Take a few steps forward." Shinsou gestured and sighed. Melissa watched anxiously as the mechanical man took his first few steps. His foot clanged against the ground. He didn't look down at his body, he felt no need or will too. His legs and hips moved with a loud whir and a loud thud at the end. Melissa's face went from eager too a bit dejected. "O-Okay... Uh... Shinsou. This is... good... but... he can walk more... human-like, right?" Each word dripped with hesitance and anxiety. Shinsou inhaled and let out a long sigh before nodding quietly. "Y-Yeah..." He looked toward the mechanical man with unsureness...

>Heightened anxiety detected.

"Hatsume... Reconfigure his movement patterns, if you can." Hitoshi said, beginning to circle the mechanical man and rub at his chin. "Let's go with a sort of casual walk. No army march and straighten out the arms a bit." He says as he hears a sort of clicking and clacking. The Mechanical man has a new set of text below the lower right corner of his vision.

>Movement reconfigured.

"Take a few more steps." Hitoshi snapped his fingers and shouted out, "Track." Which caused the targeting system to engage again. Red X focusing on Hitoshi's finger. The Mechanical Man's body turned to whir and click all at once as he began walking to follow Shinsou. Melissa followed, evident from the sound of her heels clicking behind the mechanical man. He couldn't see and did not have the desire to turn and look toward him. "Okay! Okay! This is good-! He walks quicker, so it's harder to notice the stiffer movements. We can pass this off!" Melissa clapped softly before she let out a sigh. "Let's plug him back in, and you can give me a rundown of his programming and what we've got so far." Melissa claps, Shinsou gestured his head. "Hatsume, let's order him back in." He said before walking out of sight with Melissa. The Mechanical Man began turning toward where he'd started from. His boots thumping under him as he turned to face the entrance to the room he'd been looking at. He felt wires and joints stab into him, but he felt no pain or discomfort from it.

>MOVEMENT LOCKED.

Once his movement was locked, the world went dark and black again. No more feelings upon it, just the aimless and thirstless anticipation for light to fill his eyes again. He knew what he wanted, but had no desire for it. It was strange, and he wasn't sure how to cope with it. He had no desire to cope with it. His mind ran empty on thoughts but he knew he was having them. It was a conflicting thing. By the time light fills his eyes, and sound comes on... He has reached a point in his mind where thoughts are but empty words that have no part in the actions his own body makes. 

>PRESENTATION MODE

He could hear Melissa's voice, but he couldn't see. There was a blur over his eyes, so he was stuck, stationary, and forced to listen. He showed no discomfort over listening. He just listened. "The World is advancing. The city we live in is soon to be engulfed in a new neon wave of progress. Why should our law enforcement be the only thing stuck in the past?" It sounded like she'd really rehearsed this. "If we want this hard-earned progress to be defended, we need something... someone... who will keep that peace defended." She said, finally yanking the blur away. It was a sheet, keeping him covered.

He saw men and women, dressed in fancy suits. His vision began scanning each one. Analyzing and understanding each one. None of them were hostiles, none of them had prior arrests. They were very clear investors and he was very much a product on display. Melissa continued, "It's my pleasure to introduce to you all... The Future of Law Enforcement." She must've not thought about a name for him yet. "He works tirelessly, without fault. He never slows down, he never stops, he's always moving and always going. Crime will NEVER rest with him on the streets." She said, standing before him. 

Once again, his body moved on its own. He looked from left to right, and his movements seemed to match up with what she was saying. He realized he might very well be in a showroom, and not the laboratory he'd come to be used too. "State of the art scanners go hand in hand with our very own police database. Our machine comes with the ability to target and scan each person he comes across. If you have prior criminal records... He will find out, and he will know what it is you've done." She was starting to get a bit more confident but there was still this nervous tone that seemed to keep her on her toes. "Durable, precise, quick, and never hesitating, we've packed this unit head to toe with the latest weaponry and body armor. Nothing on the streets can keep him down. Not lead, not flame, nothing!" Melissa seemed to get herself fired up. She didn't seem too great at public speaking. The machine didn't think too much about it though, not that he seemed to care...

>REST MODE ENGAGING

As Melissa continued speaking, sounds and light drowned out. He seemed to be standing and resting in an upright position. Wherever he'd go next was up to whoever it was had such control over him. He'd been shown off to a crowd of hungry investors. Perhaps Melissa had done her job right. Whatever that was. Lead Developer? Project designer? It didn't matter. He wasn't programmed to think that way. He was just motionless and thoughtless in an abyss of darkness. 

His bootup sequence engaged again and this time he was in a room with Shinsou and Hatsume, Melissa was talking to a much more older man who seemed to look just a bit like her... Everyone was dressed formally. It must've only been hours after the investor show. Unconsciously and without thinking whether it was right or wrong, he began scanning the man next to Melissa. 

>Identity confirm: **DAVID SHIELD**  
>Priror Arrest Record: **ONE  
** >Still Wanted by Police: **Negative**  
>Threat-Analysis: **Non-Lethal**

David began approaching the machine, patting Shinsou on the back and giving a nod toward Hatsume before speaking. "Well, color me wrong. You guys took this project out of my hands and just... spun it into something great. Investors wanna see him on the streets as soon as you can get him out. You got him transportation?" Shield turned to Hatsume, who was brimming with excitement. "I spent months working on his ride! It's state of the art! I'm not even sure a motorcycle's LEGALLY allowed to go that fast-" She was cut off by Shinsou. "We got him wheels, Doctor Shield." He was embarrassed by his colleague, but David was laughing. "Shinsou, please, after all the work you've done... You can just call me David." He nodded, hands in his pockets.

"Well... If you've got him ready to go... Let's get this Robocop out on the streets as soon as possible." David nodded before walking with Melissa. Shinsou and Hatsume looked toward the machine with brimming excitement and a world of new possibilities thrust upon them. "Ya hear that Rob!? Tomorrow, you're gettin' a field test!" Hatsume bounced up and down in front of him. She was like a kid who was high on sugar. Shinsou stood next to her and let out an exhale... "Let's just hope he was worth the Twenty Million this corporation spent on him..." He sighed, rubbing his nose in nervous anticipation. 

>RUNNING SYSTEM SCAN  
>ALL SYSTEMS NORMAL  
>READY FOR DEPLOYMENT


End file.
